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Webster 1913 Edition

Dance

Dance

(dȧns)
,
Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Danced
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Dancing
.]
[F.
danser
, fr. OHG.
dansōn
to draw; akin to
dinsan
to draw, Goth.
apinsan
, and prob. from the same root (meaning
to stretch
) as E.
thin
. See
Thin
.]
1.
To move with measured steps, or to a musical accompaniment; to go through, either alone or in company with others, with a regulated succession of movements, (commonly) to the sound of music; to trip or leap rhythmically.
Jack shall pipe and Gill shall
dance
.
Wither.
Good shepherd, what fair swain is this
Which
dances
with your daughter?
Shakespeare
2.
To move nimbly or merrily; to express pleasure by motion; to caper; to frisk; to skip about.
Then, ’tis time to
dance
off.
Thackeray.
More
dances
my rapt heart
Than when I first my wedded mistress saw.
Shakespeare
Shadows in the glassy waters
dance
.
Byron.
Where rivulets
dance
their wayward round.
Wordsworth.
To dance on a rope
, or
To dance on nothing
,
to be hanged.

Dance

,
Verb.
T.
To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about, or up and down; to dandle.
To
dance
our ringlets to the whistling wind.
Shakespeare
Thy grandsire loved thee well;
Many a time he
danced
thee on his knee.
Shakespeare
To dance attendance
,
to come and go obsequiously; to be or remain in waiting, at the beck and call of another, with a view to please or gain favor.
A man of his place, and so near our favor,
To
dance attendance
on their lordships' pleasure.
Shakespeare

Dance

,
Noun.
[F.
danse
, of German origin. See
Dance
,
Verb.
I.
]
1.
The leaping, tripping, or measured stepping of one who dances; an amusement, in which the movements of the persons are regulated by art, in figures and in accord with music.
2.
(Mus.)
A tune by which dancing is regulated, as the minuet, the waltz, the cotillon, etc.
☞ The word dance was used ironically, by the older writers, of many proceedings besides dancing.
Of remedies of love she knew parchance
For of that art she couth the olde
dance
.
Chaucer.
Dance of Death
(Art)
,
an allegorical representation of the power of death over all, – the old, the young, the high, and the low, being led by a dancing skeleton.
–
Morris dance
.
See
Morris
.
–
To lead one a dance
,
to cause one to go through a series of movements or experiences as if guided by a partner in a dance not understood.

Webster 1828 Edition

Dance

D'ANCE

, v.i.
1.
Primarily, to leap or spring; hence, to leap or move with measured steps, regulated by a tune, sung or played on a musical instrument; to leap or step with graceful motions of the body, corresponding with the sound of the voice or an instrument.
There is a time to mourn, and a time to dance. Eccles. iii
2.
To leap and frisk about; to move nimbly or up and down.
To dance attendance, to wait with obsequiousness; to strive to please and gain favor by assiduous attentions and officious civilities; as, to dance attendance at court.

D'ANCE

,
Verb.
T.
To make to dance; to move up and down, or back and forth; to dandle; as, to dance a child on the knee.

D'ANCE

,
Noun.
1.
In general sense, a leaping and frisking about. Appropriately, a leaping or stepping with motions of the body adjusted to the measure of a tune, particularly by two or more in concert. A lively brisk exercise or amusement, in which the movements of the persons are regulated by art, in figure, and by the sound of instruments, in measure.
2.
A tune by which dancing is regulated, as the minuet, the waltz, the cotillon, &c.

Definition 2024

dance

dance

See also: dancé

English

A man and woman dancing.

Alternative forms

Noun

dance ‎(plural dances)

  1. A sequence of rhythmic steps or movements usually performed to music, for pleasure or as a form of social interaction.
    • 1907, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “chapter II”, in The Younger Set (Project Gutenberg; EBook #14852), New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt Company, published 1 February 2005 (Project Gutenberg version), OCLC 4241346:
      "I ought to arise and go forth with timbrels and with dances; but, do you know, I am not inclined to revels? There has been a little—just a very little bit too much festivity so far …. Not that I don't adore dinners and gossip and dances; not that I do not love to pervade bright and glittering places. […]"
  2. A social gathering where dancing is the main activity.
    • 1907, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “chapter II”, in The Younger Set (Project Gutenberg; EBook #14852), New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt Company, published 1 February 2005 (Project Gutenberg version), OCLC 4241346:
      "I ought to arise and go forth with timbrels and with dances; but, do you know, I am not inclined to revels? There has been a little—just a very little bit too much festivity so far …. Not that I don't adore dinners and gossip and dances; not that I do not love to pervade bright and glittering places. […]"
  3. (heraldry) A normally horizontal stripe called a fess that has been modified to zig-zag across the center of a coat of arms from dexter to sinister.
  4. A genre of modern music characterised by sampled beats, repetitive rhythms and few lyrics.
  5. (uncountable) The art, profession, and study of dancing.
  6. A piece of music with a particular dance rhythm.[1]
    • 1909, Archibald Marshall, The Squire's Daughter, chapterI:
      They stayed together during three dances, went out on to the terrace, explored wherever they were permitted to explore, paid two visits to the buffet, and enjoyed themselves much in the same way as if they had been school-children surreptitiously breaking loose from an assembly of grown-ups.

Hyponyms

  • See also Wikisaurus:dance

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

dance ‎(third-person singular simple present dances, present participle dancing, simple past and past participle danced)

  1. (intransitive) To move with rhythmic steps or movements, especially in time to music.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 4, in The Celebrity:
      “Well,” I answered, at first with uncertainty, then with inspiration, “he would do splendidly to lead your cotillon, if you think of having one.” “So you do not dance, Mr. Crocker?” I was somewhat set back by her perspicuity.
    I danced with her all night long.‎
  2. (intransitive) To leap or move lightly and rapidly.
    His eyes danced with pleasure as he spoke.   She accused her political opponent of dancing around the issue instead of confronting it.‎
    • Byron
      Shadows in the glassy waters dance.
  3. (transitive) To perform the steps to.
    Have you ever danced the tango?‎
  4. (transitive) To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

  • Appendix:Dances

Anagrams

References

  1. ↑ J. A. Simpson and E. S. C. Weiner (prepared by), The Compact Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition (Claredon Press, Oxford 1991 [1989], ISBN 0-19-861258-3), page 387

French

Etymology

From English dance.

Noun

dance f ‎(uncountable)

  1. dance music

Galician

Verb

dance

  1. first-person singular present subjunctive of danzar
  2. third-person singular present subjunctive of danzar

Middle French

Etymology

Old French dance.

Noun

dance f (plural dances)

  1. dance

Descendants

Old French

Etymology

From Germanic, see English dance, French danse

Noun

dance f ‎(oblique plural dances, nominative singular dance, nominative plural dances)

  1. dance

Portuguese

Verb

dance

  1. First-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of dançar
  2. Third-person singular (ele, ela, also used with tu and você?) present subjunctive of dançar
  3. First-person singular (eu) affirmative imperative of dançar
  4. Third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of dançar
  5. First-person singular (eu) negative imperative of dançar
  6. Third-person singular (você) negative imperative of dançar

Spanish

Pronunciation

  • (Castilian) IPA(key): [ˈda̠n̟.θe̞]
  • (Latin America) IPA(key): [ˈda̠n.se̞]

Verb

dance

  1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of danzar.
  2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of danzar.
  3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of danzar.

Etymology

From Middle English daunsen, from Anglo-Norman dancer, dauncer ‎(“to dance”) (compare Old French dancier), from Frankish *dansōn ‎(“to draw, pull, stretch out, gesture”) (compare Old High German dansōn ‎(“to draw, pull”)), from Proto-Germanic *þansōną, from *þinsaną ‎(“to draw, pull”). More at thin.

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /dɑːns/, /dæns/
  • (US) IPA(key): /dæns/
  • Rhymes: -ɑːns, -æns

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